Earlier this week, Tony Iannelli's Business Matters hosted a one-on-one conversation between Tony and NorCo Exec GOP nominee Tom Giovanni, followed by a similar conversation with Democratic standard bearer Tara Zrinski. Each segment lasted about 12 minutes. Iannelli made clear several times that he had offered a debate format, but that Giovanni nixed the idea. In my view, that was perhaps his biggest mistake. On top of that, Giovanni stumbled over words in responding to even the simplest of questions. I credit Tom as the Quiet Man on County Council, and as he pointed out himself, "If you're speaking, you're not listening." As true as that is, a county executive must be someone who, when he does communicate, does so effectively. Tom, for all his qualities, comes up a bit short on that metric.
The very first question, one of Tony's famous softballs, simply asked Tom why he's running. This was Tom's answer: "The reason I'm running is for - um - people and what I like about - I'm a life long citizen of Northampton County - born and raised here and presently, I'm county commissioner of District Four. So what really concerns me about county government right now is the lack of accountability, integrity and transparency. That to me really bothers me. When I'm county executive, I will bring those virtues back to the people of Northampton County."
Tom did eventually answer the question, and I believe him. I just wish he'd also bring some effective communication as well. He later provided an example of the lack of transparency by noting that Gracedale was running at a deficit and this was never disclosed to County Council until June.
In January 2024, Executive Lamont McClure told County Council, "In my administration, we have not had a county contribution from the general fund, and the general fund, for people listening on Youtube, is the real estate tax revenue we collect. My administration has not once contributed from the general fund to Gracedale. Gracedale has been self-sustaining since I have been in office."
Independent audits of Gracedale tell a different story. There was a $15 million deficit in 2023 and a $10 million deficit in 2024.
Interestingly, Giovanni had no problem with Tara Zrinski's audit (She is county controller) of $5 million that was set aside for retention bonuses at Gracedale. She determined that less than half of that was actually paid and the rest was poured into Gracedale's operating expenses.
What does Giovanni want to bring to NorCo? "All that I want is good government. Right now I don't think we have good government. Right now, we have people who are attacking each other, saying different things, and that's not good government."
What did I say Giovanni should have debated Zrinski? That's because, in a debate format, Tara Zrinski tends to get loud. She is more familiar with a rally atmosphere than the art of persuasion. But one-on-one, she can be very effective, presents well, and is an effective communicator.
When explaining her audit of $5 million set aside for retention bonuses, she said that it was actually the unions who negotiated away the bonuses in exchange for higher salaries. She added that Executive Lamont McClure told Council this is what had happened. But that statement is slightly disingenuous because the retention bonuses were also intended for nonunion workers and should have remained in effect for them. She did acknowledge that "there could have been more transparency in how that money was moved over."
She praised McClure's tenure as Executive, especially the way he responded to COVID. "But I plan on running my administration a little bit differently." She indicated her cabinet would be different. "I'm not Lamont McClure 2.0."
I believe we have two very good candidates seeking office. What's especially nice is that the loser will be able to remain in office on Council or as Controller.
Giovanni has often voted with Democrats. He is fairly bipartisan. I believe him when he says his primary focus is good government. Zrinski has long been an ardent environmentalist but has made the slow and sometimes painful transition from activist to elected official. She has done a great job as Controller. I believe both candidates would be more willing to pay people what they are worth.
But how would they respond to a crisis like the state budget impasse currently facing McClure? Would they borrow money? Use the rainy-day fund? Warn of a furlough in October? Or would they have another solution? I have asked both what they would do and will give you their responses on Monday.
38 comments:
Must disagree on Zyrinski. She has not offered any solutions or thoughts on how to handle the upcoming federal cuts and has offered no plan to bring the County new money into its coffers. The taxes will go up and she has not addressed it head on. She also has no idea how to manage funding to keep the nursing home in the black.
Nope, not good.
Maybe Tom can find the money McClure and Zohrinski "lost?"
This cake has been baked for months. Zrinski gets somewhere around 40k votes and 53%. Republicans will be lucky to snag a Council seat or two.
Giovanni has no business being County Exec. Being a manager at Radio Shack is not proper training.
Thank you for your take on the one-on-one conversation on Business Matters.
What I read is that Tom Giovanni is “fairly bipartisan,” you (Bernie) can believe that “his primary focus is good government,” and that he is not an effective communicator.
On the other hand, Tara Zrinski is a better communicator with practiced explanations like that she will not be “Lamont McClure 2.0,” and that the missing $5,000,000 means “there could have been more transparency.”
If we vote in Giovanni, we will have a well-managed county, careful fiscal management, and awkwardly-worded speeches.
If we vote in Zrinski, we will have well-worded statements like McClure’s, “My administration has not once contributed from the general fund to Gracedale.”
I see it as a choice between getting the right things done and getting skillful excuses about mismanagement.
Scott Janney
True and the Greek tragedy that is norco will continue
Neither does the Solar Panel Salesperson- she's a fraud!
It wasn’t County money according to Barron, but Cares Act and American Rescue money.
I don't know what planet you've been on, but Rs have been mounting a very effective campaign. They are running as a team while Dems are at each other throats. One of them, Nadeem Qayuum, has no understanding of county government, has a very spotty background and appears to hate America. His wife, Taiba Sultana, definitely hates this country., and attacked it on 9/11. Lori Vargo Heffner has received no support from Dems bc she has stood up to Lamont at times, and morons like Kelly Keegan have actively worked against her. This is amazing bc she is cutting off her nose to spite her face. Jason Boulette is from Wind Gap and nobody knows who he is. He is working hard but it is hard for a Dem from the slate belt. Dave Holland is by far the best of the bunch and really would be a help regarding Gracedale, but do people know he was an Administrator there when it ran well? n The R candidates include a Bethlehem cop who happens to be Lebanese. While the Lebanese community is small, it is very active and very vocal. He's going to win. So will Goffredo and Brown. Martinez is a successful businessman and restauranter.
On the Exec side, both candidates are good people. I like them both. Tara is very dynamic and knows how to campaign. Tom is a very solid and decent person. They both care about people. While these races are largely determined by what is going on nationally, people have yet to feel the ill effects of the Trump admin. They will, but not just yet.
She's saving the county one leaky paper straw at a time. I wipe my ass with one square in her honor. When she chewed gum with her mouth open and kept her hands in her pockets and looked bored and annoyed at Nazareth's July 4 observance, I knew she was one of us.
You are spot on about the Republicans, Bernie. There is strength in numbers and this diverse group supports each other. I’ve not seen or heard any of them scream through a bullhorn as has been the norm of Zrinski. They have come together and honestly presented who they are and why they want to serve.
I don't blame anyone for not wanting to debate Tara. She is a professional liar and would likely misrepresent facts and propagate half truths. The problem woth these antics is that the voters often don't know fact from fiction and such dishonest tactics work.
Sergeant Elias has no shot, I hear he is not very well liked by his own Republican leadership in Northampton County. Goes off the plantation too often. Skipped out on Giovanni fundraiser this week to attend candidate forum in Democrat territory. He refused to accept GLVAR endorsement when he was told by multiple party people to accept the endorsement. Sam Elias is too rogue to be taken seriously.
It should be noted Scott is a right wing opperative. Just in case anyone is keeping score.
John Brown will be Director of Administration. We will be in very good hands.
The left wing must go, or we will never be a good country again.
Lori has received plenty of support. She just needs to show up for more than 20 minutes at a time.
Scott actually has a day job where during the past five years he has lead a team of fundraisers in 12 states who, according to the CEO where he works, have provided over $1,000,000,000 (yes, that’s a billion dollars) for millions of Americans, providing them with food, housing, education, and a pathway out of poverty. My word are my own, not those of any political organization or of my employer.
Scott Janney
He very well may get most votes.
Sam is very well liked where ever he goes. He personable and is knowledgeable. It is worth noting he gained the most votes in the primary. Our republican candidates are all well qualified and have histories that more then qualify them to clean up the Dem's created mess. If and I mean if the republican's turn out is even normal than the work of repairing Gracedale and bringing transparency to our county government will be in republican hands again.
Scott Janney is a right wing operative?! Your one sentence expresses one point; propagandist hack. You have no idea who Scott is!
Commander Terra was called to defend Gaea against the belligerent capitalist horde hell bent on maximalist extraction of any available resources. Her performance with the bullhorn replete with full body spasms and facial contortions was a master class in radical activism Saul Alinsky would give it a seal of approval she literally took it to the streets Bernie tried to use this as some sort of humiliation to those in the know it was poetry in motion
Sam is well liked by the county Republican Party, independants and beyond. He is a great candidate and is running a solid campaign. He has the absolute support of his party, and any gossip to the contrary is false.
Sam will be elected, and Northampton Council will be lucky to have him.
John Brown was a fiscal disaster and will be just as bad in any job that he is put into
oops i meant Right Wing
And the radical right
She's the absolute worst possible candidate- incompetent, and mean. I remember how she tried to smear Ann Flood over her non-profit. Just a disgraceful human being!
If John Cusick would've campaigned just a little, we wouldn't be in this mess!
Apparently John Brown has started a Gun Club.
According to Giovanni, Brown will not be a part of his administration. Some county employees actually talked with him and are spreading the word already. The sheriff's deputies invited bith candidates to meet with them and Giovanni already met with them. Just ask a deputy what was discussed.
John Brownpants was the worst!
Zrinski was at the carpenter's training center in Allentown, Lehigh County, on Thursday. Why does the Northampton County Controller continue to campaign during working hours? Council needs to investigate.
County employees get a relatively generous leave policy. Over a week of personal time, 2 weeks vacation time, amd comp time...she could be using that. But it does seem like a lot of stuff during the day.
you were right the first time--LEFT
And her explanation of cups of water? What was she drinking.
I took a deep dive into the County Council minutes during the time frame that both Tara Zrinski and Tom Giovanni served together on the Northampton County Council. I was curious as to why Mr. Giovani is referred to as “The Quiet Man” and found that the moniker is an understatement. I compared the number of times Mr. Giovanni spoke, outside of the perfunctory speech of acknowledging presence, saying the pledge of allegiance, seconding motions made by other members, reading aloud ordinances as requested by the chair and moving to adjourn the meeting (which was most frequently moved by Giovanni)
I compared Mr. Giovanni’s level of engagement and productivity with that of Ms. Zrinski’s by logging the number of times each of them commented on or questioned the business at hand. It occurred to me after examining these results in 2020, to add a control for the years 2021-2023. I chose Mr. Cusick, as he engaged a moderate amount in comparison to some members that spoke more and others that spoke less. I also compared the number of committee and board reports from each of these 3 members, indicating the engagement with the county’s stakeholders. I probably shorted Ms. Zrinski’s contributions, as many of the resolutions/ordinances she presented were not just assigned by the chair but a direct result of her hard work outside of Council Meetings.
2020 - Zrinski actively engaged during every one of the 25 meetings for a total of 117 times. Giovanni remained silent for 19 of the meetings with a total of only 9 comments or questions for the entire year.
Zrinski gave 17 reports to council as compared to the 6 reports presented by Giovanni.
Giovanni voted with Zrinski on 96% of the total votes taken in 2020. One of the votes on which they differed, was the purchase of E Poll books. Giovanni voted against their use. It’s a good thing that the majority of members voted with Zrinski, as they have been a huge time saver for poll workers.
2021 - During the 25 meetings held during 2021, Zrinski and Cusick each actively engaged 82 times. Giovanni had a run of 21 consecutive meetings where he did not utter a word other than the perfunctory utterances required by council business. He broke the streak with a single utterance to congratulate Peg Ferraro on her contributions to Council, nice but certainly not meaningful in moving our county forward. He had 3 other interactions during that year.
Zrinski gave 28 reports during the year and Cusick and Giovanni tied at 10 reports each.
Giovanni voted with Zrinski on 95% of the votes taken in 2021.
2022 - Zrinski actively engaged with Council 114 times during the 25 meetings. By comparison, Giovanni had a total of 19 engagements and remained silent in 14 of the meetings. Cusick engaged 130 times during that same time period.
Zrinski gave 41 reports throughout 2022, compared to Giovani’s 5 reports and Cusick’s 4 reports.
Giovanni voted with Zrinski on 84% of the total votes taken.
2023 - This was the last year of Zrinkski’s participation as a County Commissioner, as she was elected to begin her position as County Controller beginning in 2024. During this year, Zrinski engaged 149 times in a meaningful way. Giovanni engaged 19 times (one of which was his motion to accept Zrinki’s resignation) but he remained silent in 22 of the 25 meetings. Cusick engaged 174 times.
Zrinski gave 33 reports during her last year on Council compared to Giovanni’s 4 reports and Cusick’s 6.
I didn’t record the numbers for each Commissioner but Zrinski offered more reports each of the 4 recorded years, than any other member of Council.
In their final year together, Giovanni voted with Zrinski on 88% of the votes taken.
Mr Giovanni is not quiet because he’s listening. He is quiet because he has nothing to offer. Tara Zrinski will continue to engage with county stakeholders and represent the best interests of our community!
"John Brown will be Director of Administration" and that is exactly what makes me and my whole family vote for Zrinski
I don't believe that for a second
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